Trent Alexander-Arnold has played his final game for Liverpool.
Trent Alexander-Arnold has played his final game for Liverpool.
Trent Alexander-Arnold will join Real Madrid when the transfer window opens on Sunday in a deal worth £10m for Liverpool. In a move that has been widely expected for some time, the development was confirmed on Friday, with the Reds set to bank £10m for a player whose contract expires on June 30.
It means the Reds aren't losing their vice captain as a free agent and is a welcome boost to the coffers, with los Blancos desperate to get the right-back in before the start of the lucrative and revamped Club World Cup in the United States, which begins in mid-June.
Due to the new-look nature of the FIFA tournament, the worldwide transfer window opens officially for 10 days from Sunday June 1, which has allowed Real Madrid to complete the deal for Alexander-Arnold in time for their first game of the competition, against the Saudi Pro League's Al-Hilal on June 18.
Initial reports earlier this month claimed the La Liga giants were willing to make a payment of £850,000 to get Alexander-Arnold on board earlier than anticipated. However, Liverpool have managed to negotiate his departure to the point where they will now receive a one-off payment worth more than 11 times that initial offer to cancel their registration of the player 29 days earlier.
It's also thought the Reds will save somewhere in the region of £800,000 on wages for the outgoing Alexander-Arnold. Having informed the club of his plans during the March international break, he made public his intentions to leave at the end of the season earlier this month, in a video message recorded for supporters, which was followed by a sit-down interview with LFCTV.
As a 26-year-old England international who has been pivotal to Liverpool winning every major trophy on offer since 2019, including two Premier League titles, Alexander-Arnold's true value far exceeds the fee Real Madrid are paying. But the outcome will likely still be viewed as a successful one for the club, given the prospect of seeing him depart for nothing prior to the new agreement with the La Liga runners-up.
Real Madrid's pursuit has been an open secret for months and the Spanish side saw overtures firmly turned down by Liverpool at the turn of the year, with the Reds still believing there was a chance the defender would opt to remain on Merseyside.
It was also felt that the value of keeping the creative defender in the squad as they chased the Premier League title far outweighed any knock-down transfer fee for a player who was inside the final six months of his agreement.
Liverpool offered the West Derby-born player the chance to become one of the best-paid full-backs in world football with their final contract offer earlier this year, but the long-standing negotiations between his representatives and sporting director Richard Hughes finally came to an end with the acceptance that Alexander-Arnold had made up his mind to seek a fresh challenge in Madrid.
The choice to leave Anfield is one that has divided opinion among Liverpool supporters and the No.66 was loudly booed by a portion of supporters when he was introduced for Conor Bradley in the 2-2 draw with Arsenal earlier this month.
After fans sang about Bradley and Reds legend Steven Gerrard as coded messages for Alexander-Arnold upon his arrival, large swathes of fans then booed before his first touches of the ball were loudly jeered with the score at 2-1 to the hosts at the time.
Speaking at the LFC Foundation Gala Ball last Friday at the Anglican Cathedral, former manager Jurgen Klopp expressed his disappointment with those who had voiced their disapproval during the game with the Gunners.
Klopp, who held up a Liverpool shirt with Alexander-Arnold's name on the back, said: “I don't want to tell anyone what they should think, I don't want to say what you have to think but I can tell you what you think is wrong. I am an old man and I don't waste time with hiding my opinion.
"I watched the game when he came on and I heard the booing. I'm old so it may be my hearing so I turned up the volume and said: 'That's booing'. I needed another 10 seconds to realise and then I switched the telly off.
"I honestly could not have been more disappointed in this moment. This is not us, 100%. I don't tell you you should not be disappointed or angry, I tell you: 'Don't forget'. This club does not forget. We are famous for not forgetting.”
Sunday's Premier League trophy ceremony passed without incident, however, with Alexander-Arnold cheered when his name was read out as part of the substitutes' bench and when he was brought on for Bradley at half time. There was also no adverse reaction when he celebrated in front of the Kop with the Premier League title in the post-match celebrations.
"To get the reception I got means more than anything to me," Alexander-Arnold told Sky Sports. "I've played hundreds of games for the club, but I've never felt so loved and cared for than today.
"From the bottom of my heart, I hope the fans and supporters of this club will be able to recognise the hard work and everything I did for the team. There wasn't a day, minute or second I didn't think about the team. From six years old to now, 20 years is a very long time but I've loved every minute - the ups and the downs.
"Coming through the academy, making it into the first team, being part of that properly, it's been an honour and a privilege."
Alexander-Arnold, who was part of the open-top bus parade across the city on Bank Holiday Monday, posted on social media after the event: "Perfect send off. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, I love my city."
The right-back could line up against his boyhood club next season when Liverpool and Real Madrid take part in the Champions League.